U.S. patent number 4,931,932 [Application Number 07/101,973] was granted by the patent office on 1990-06-05 for computerized system with means to automatically clear and sell wait-listed customer reservations.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Travelsoft, Inc.. Invention is credited to Stanley Dalnekoff, Michael L. Schneider.
United States Patent |
4,931,932 |
Dalnekoff , et al. |
June 5, 1990 |
**Please see images for:
( Certificate of Correction ) ** |
Computerized system with means to automatically clear and sell
wait-listed customer reservations
Abstract
The present invention relates to an electronic inventory
clearing system having particular utility as an airline reservation
system. The system includes one or more devices for storing
information from which transactions can be generated, at least one
transaction forwarding and storage station for requesting a desired
transaction and an information processing unit for evaluating
requested items with respect to the stored information. The
information processing unit is capable of compiling a list of
uncompleted transactions and of automatically querying the
information storage device(s) for the availability of items to fill
each transaction on the list. A process for using the system is
also described.
Inventors: |
Dalnekoff; Stanley (New Haven,
CT), Schneider; Michael L. (New Haven, CT) |
Assignee: |
Travelsoft, Inc. (New Haven,
CT)
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Family
ID: |
22287449 |
Appl.
No.: |
07/101,973 |
Filed: |
September 28, 1987 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
705/5; 700/90;
705/28 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q
10/02 (20130101); G06Q 10/087 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
G06Q
10/00 (20060101); G06F 015/26 () |
Field of
Search: |
;364/401,408,400,407 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
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0146360 |
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Aug 1985 |
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JP |
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233769 |
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Nov 1985 |
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JP |
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Other References
G D. Dubey et al, "Data Communication Network for Air-India and
Indian Airline", J. Instn. Electronics & Telecom. Engrs., vol.
24, Nos. 3 & 4, Mar.-Apr. 1978..
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Primary Examiner: Smith; Jerry
Assistant Examiner: Hayes; Gail D.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Bachman & LaPointe
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A reservation system for use by travel agents which
electronically and automatically clears travel requests and which
comprises:
means for communicating with a storage device storing an inventory
of seats on a particular mode of transportation, said seats being
categorized as unavailable if sold or reserved and being
categorized as available if unsold or unreserved;
said inventory of seats being changeable as a result of
cancellation and non-cancellation events;
said communicating means including means for enabling at least one
agent to request a desired seat on a desired mode of transportation
by specifying a desired set of criteria;
means for evaluating the seat request to determine the availability
of the desired seat and for providing an indication to said at
least one agent of a completed transaction if said requested seat
is in said available category and of a non-completed transaction if
said requested seat is in said unavailable category;
means for compiling and storing a set of wait-listed requests
comprising a plurality of said non-completed transactions; and
said communicating means further including means for automatically
clearing and selling said wait-listed seat requests without further
intervention of said at least one agent by continuously and
automatically querying said changeable seat inventory in said
storage device about each said wait-listed request and
re-evaluating each said wait-listed request until each said
wait-listed request is filled.
2. A system as set forth in claim 19 where said evaluating means
further includes means for notifying said agent of said successful
transaction when said system finds an available seat conforming to
said requested seat and for removing said seat request from said
set of wait-listed seat requests.
3. A system as set forth in claim 2 wherein said notifying means
automatically notifies said agent without any action on the part of
said agent.
4. A system as set forth in claim 2 which further comprises at
least one of a printer for providing indicia of said completed
transaction and a device for displaying visual indicia of said
completed transaction.
5. A system as set forth in claim 2 wherein said evaluating means
has at least one storage device associated therewith for storing
information relating to transactions.
6. A system as set forth in claim 19 wherein said list compiling
and storing means forms part of said evaluating means.
7. A system as set forth in claim 2 wherein said evaluating means
comprises at least one information processing unit having memory
storage and communications capability.
8. A system as set forth in claim 7 wherein said enabling means
comprises a plurality of input stations.
9. A system as set forth in claim 8 wherein each said input station
has at least one said information processing unit, at least one
manual input device and at least one visual display device.
10. A system according to claim 1 wherein said communication means
further includes means for enabling an operator to issue
instructions to said system to halt further processing of said
wait-listed requests.
11. A process for electronically and automatically clearing travel
requests which comprises:
communicating with at least one storage device for storing an
inventory of seats on a particular mode of transportation, said
seats being categorized as unavailable if sold or reserved and
being categorized as available if unsold or unreserved;
said inventory of seats being changeable as a result of
cancellation and non-cancellation events;
said communicating step comprising requesting a desired seat on a
desired mode of transportation by specifying a desired set of
criteria;
evaluating the seat request to determine the availability of the
desired seat;
providing an indication to an agent of a completed transaction if
the requested seat is in the available category and a non-completed
transaction if the requested seat is in the unavailable
category;
compiling and storing a set of wait-listed seat requests comprising
a plurality of said non-completed transactions; and
said communicating step further comprising automatically clearing
and selling said wait-listed seat requests without further
intervention of the agent by continuously and automatically
querying said inventory in said at least one storage device about
each said wait-listed request and re-evaluating each said
wait-listed request until each said wait-listed request is
filled.
12. A process as in claim 21 further comprising halting said
querying step as a result of an operator issuing instruction to
stop said querying.
13. A process as in claim 21 wherein said indication providing step
further comprises notifying said agent of the completion of a
previously uncompleted transaction.
14. A process as in claim 13 wherein said notifying step comprises
automatically notifying said agent.
15. A process as in claim 13 wherein said notifying step comprises
at least one of printing indicia of said completed transaction and
visually displaying indicia of said completed transaction.
16. A process as in claim 13 wherein said notifying step comprises
storing information relating to said completed transaction for
later retrieval by said agent.
17. A process as in claim 11 further comprising:
generating information about said inventory and storing generated
information in said at least one storage device;
using said generated information to form said seat request; and
submitting said seat request to a computer for evaluation against
information stored in a data base.
18. A process according to claim 11 further comprising
automatically clearing a filled wait-listed requested from said set
of wait-listed requests.
19. A process for electronically and automatically processing
travel requests which comprises:
communicating with at least one storage device for storing
information about an inventory of seats on a particular mode of
transportation;
collecting a plurality of requests made by at least one requester
about desired seats on said mode of transportation;
storing said collected requests for later processing;
said communicating step including continuously and automatically
processing each said stored request by continuously and
automatically querying said inventory; and
notifying a requester about a particular one of said collected
requests which is available in said inventory.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an electronic inventory clearance
system which has utility as a system for electronically buying and
selling items. The system has particular utility as a reservation
system for travel accommodations such as airline reservations.
Systems employing high speed electronic digital computers are
especially useful for rapid and reliable processing of business
data. Over the years, numerous systems utilizing computers of
various sorts have been developed for use in the transportation
industry. U.S. Pat. No. 2,542,890 to Basu et al. illustrates one
rudimentary system. The system includes a master station which
communicates with one or more remote booking panels. To make a
reservation or check on availability, an operator at a remote
booking panel presses a button corresponding to a particular flight
on a particular date and receives an indication of seat
availability. The operator by pressing other buttons or switches
can either book a seat on a flight or cancel a reservation.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,883,106 to Cornwell et al. shows yet another early
reservation system for travel accommodations. In this system, a
central station is used to maintain an inventory and one or more
remote units are used to scan the inventory to locate a desired
accommodation and to make a reservation if such an accommodation is
found. The system also allows an agent to locate a record of a
reservation and effect a sale or cancellation of that reservation.
One of the particular deficiencies of this system is the lack of an
efficient mechanism for handling wait-listed items, particularly
when access to the central station is unavailable. With this
system, a list must be clerically kept. In addition, intervention
by a master agent is required to clear a wait-listed item.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,995,729 to Steele illustrates an electronic digital
inventory computer which also has utility in a passenger
reservation system. The system includes a central processing unit
for storing information about an inventory and one or more input
devices for communicating with the central processing unit to place
an order. Here again, there is no effective mechanism for
processing wait-listed items.
More recently, electronic systems for issuing tickets and/or
boarding passes to passengers have been developed. These systems
employ modern digital computers and have plural input/output
terminals tied to a master computer. U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,750,103 to
Angus et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 4,449,186 to Kelly et al. exemplify
these systems.
Most travel agencies today utilize a single primary or host
reservation system to make and sell airline reservations and seats.
The agent utilizes a computer to request a seat or reservation on a
specific flight. Often, requests are not filled because
communication with the reservation system's computer is impossible
or seats in a desired class or on a desired flight are unavailable.
These unfilled requests are often placed on a wait-list within the
reservation system or in the event of computer related malfunctions
kept manually. Problems arise both in clearing items already
wait-listed and adding new requests when access to the reservation
system becomes available. For example, when a previously
unavailable computer in the system becomes available, a person must
manually enter, reserve and confirm the reservation. After doing
this, the requested reservation may not be available, and it may
have to be wait-listed for later action.
When seats do become available, either by cancellation or
additional allocation, airline reservation systems in use today do
not automatically clear wait-listed reservations. It is usually the
responsibility of the agent to review the status of a reservation
and sell a wait-listed seat when it becomes available. The problem
is further exacerbated in that most host systems are controlled by
a particular airline. In these systems, seat inventory is
controlled by controlling the number of discount seats on a daily
basis. The airline(s) sponsoring the host system use this control
and the allocation of seats to their own and other reservation
systems or co-host systems as a method of obtaining a competitive
advantage over other airlines. With the large number of agents
trying to sell wait-listed seats, the probability of a successful
sale becomes lower as the volatility of seats and number of agents
increase.
It is believed that most travel agents would welcome a system which
collects requests when an airline's reservation computer is
unavailable or when requested items are unavailable, stores a list
of these inventory requests, subsequently automatically uses this
collected information to query one or more master reservation
systems regarding item availability, and after finding an item
meeting predefined criteria automatically sells the item in the
name of an individual. As yet, such a system is not in commercial
operation or commercially available.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an
electronic inventory clearance system and process having particular
utility as an airline reservation system as well as utility in
other applications where reservations or items are sold via
computer interaction.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a system
and process as above which requires minimal operator intervention
in clearing wait-listed reservations or items.
It is still a further object of the present invention to provide a
system and process as above which is capable of performing both
traditional and non-traditional booking, buying and/or selling
techniques.
These and other objects and advantages will become more apparent
from the following description and drawings.
SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
The foregoing objects and advantages are achieved by the electronic
inventory clearance system of the present invention which comprise
means for inputting or generating an inventory of computer
transactions; means for storing said inventory of transactions;
means for extracting and/or requesting a particular transaction;
means for evaluating the result of the requested transaction to
determine whether the results were successful or unsuccessful; said
evaluating means including means for compiling and storing an
inventory of requested transactions which require further action
and means for continuously and automatically presenting these
transactions in the inventory to an information storage means until
either at least one transaction in the inventory has been
successfully performed or an operator of the system stops the
search. The system further includes means for notifying a user of
the system that a previously unsuccessful transaction has been
successfully completed.
In one embodiment, the system includes one or more stations for
communicating with an inventory storage system. Each station may be
used to input inventory requests and receive information relating
to a requested transaction. Each station preferably comprises one
or more computers, one or more visual display means and one or more
keyboards for requesting an inventory transaction having predefined
criteria such as a seat in a particular class on a particular
flight on a particular date. Each station further has means for
compiling and storing an inventory of requested transactions which
have not been completed for automatic processing. Still further,
each station includes an output module which preferably comprises
at least one alphanumeric printer for issuing indicia of a
completed inventory transaction, visual display means for
displaying the status of requested inventory transactions and/or
means for storing a list of completed or uncompleted inventory
transactions.
The system of the present invention operates as follows. A user or
requester uses an input device to request a particular inventory
transaction. If access is available, the request is compared with
the available items in the inventory storage system. If the
requested transaction is available, a sale of the requested
inventory item is effected and an output module receives
instructions to print out a ticket or to store a reservation of the
item within one of the computers for later sale. At the same time,
the status of the sold/reserved item is changed from available to
unavailable in the inventory storage system. If the requested
transaction cannot be completed either for lack of item
availability or lack of access to the inventory storage system, the
user has the option to add the requested action to a list compiled
within a unit for compiling and storing an inventory of requested
inventory actions. This stored list of inventory requests is then
automatically presented to means for querying the inventory storage
system regarding item availability. After finding an item which
meets the predefined criteria of the request transaction, a sale or
reservation depending upon the request is automatically made. At
this point, the system may automatically notify the user that a
sale has been made or may store information about the sale or
request for later retrieval by the user. The search or querying
operation continues automatically until either one or more items in
the inventory storage system are sold or an operator intervenes. As
can be seen from the foregoing, the system of the present invention
is designed to operate in an automatic mode with minimal
intervention by operators and users.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The FIGURE is a schematic representation of an electronic inventory
clearance system in accordance with the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
While the present invention will be described in the context of an
airline reservation system, it should be recognized that its
potential uses extend to all applications where reservations are
made, items are bought and sold via computer interaction, or
transactions are presented to a computer system. Thus, the system
could be used in the entertainment industry to sell or reserve
theatre tickets. It could also be used by the cable TV industry for
in-home merchandising of products and services. Still further, it
could be used for buying and selling financial instruments or
equities. In addition, it could store transactions to a computer
data base. It could also be used to request the initiation or
termination of a process controlled by a computer. The present
invention is intended to cover all such applications.
Referring now to the drawing, the electronic inventory clearance
system 10 includes one or more transaction forwarding and storage
stations 12 which function as input/output stations, an inventory
storage system or data base comprising one or more devices 14, 14'
for storing an inventory of items to be sold, and a central
processing unit 16. The stations 12 may be located at a site or
sites remote from the inventory storage system such as in a travel
agent's office. . Alternatively, the stations 12 may be located
on-site with the inventory storage system. Still further, the
inventory storage device(s) 14, 14' may be located either at the
same location as the central processing unit 16 or at a remote
location(s).
Each station 12 has an input portion which comprises at least one
keyboard 18 for entering the details of a request, at least one
information processing unit 20, and at least one video display
device 22 such as a CRT display. Through the keyboard 18, a user or
requester such as a travel agent may define the criteria for a
requested transaction, i.e. date(s) of travel, point of origin,
destination, routing, particular flights, class of service, number
of seats, location of seats, etc. including options and
contingencies.
Each station 12 also has an output portion which includes the
information processing unit(s) 20, the video display device(s) 22
and at least one printer 24. The printer(s) 24 may be used to issue
indicia of a completed transaction such as a ticket, a confirmation
of a reservation, and/or an itinerary. The printer(s) could also be
used to provide an operator with a report about the status of each
request item awaiting action and/or the sale of such items.
The stations 12 may further include one or more storage devices 23.
The storage devices 23 may comprise any suitable means known in the
art such as a tape storage device, a hard disk, and/or a floppy
disk. The device(s) 23 may be used to store an inventory of items
to be bought, sold, or otherwise manipulated, an inventory of
transactions to be completed, as well as any other desired
information or records.
The inventory storage device(s) 14, 14' may comprise any suitable
means known in the art for storing data about an inventory of items
including the availability or unavailability of such items. For
example, each storage device could be a computer with a hard disk
memory and/or a tape storage device with appropriate read/write
heads. In the context of an airline reservation system, one device
14 may be a host reservation system and the other device 14' may be
a second host reservation system or a co-host reservation system
which can be accessed by the first host reservation system.
The central processing unit 16 and the information processing unit
20 each may comprise any special or general purpose computer known
in the art including micro-computers. Each one may be programmed to
carry out the aims of the present invention or may contain suitable
circuitry to do the same. Each unit ideally complies with the
following considerations--have sufficient capacity to run the
program, sufficient storage capacity 21, 26 to compile and store a
list or inventory of as yet uncompleted inventory transactions, a
removable data storage device not shown such as a tape or disk for
backup, and means 19, 28 for communicating or interfacing with
respective ones of the stations 12 and the inventory storage
devices 14, 14'. The communication means for each unit may comprise
any suitable communication link or device known in the art such as
a modem. Each memory storage 21, 26 is preferably capable of
storing information on different media and in different
formats.
In operation, the information processing unit 20 is the heart of
the system. It receives requests from a user and through suitable
programming and/or circuitry evaluates the requested transaction to
determine if it can be successfully or unsuccessfully completed. If
a requested inventory item is available, the unit 20 may effect a
sale of the item or make a reservation thereof. At the same time,
the unit 20 may instruct the unit 16 to change the status of the
item within the storage device(s) 14, 14' from available to
unavailable.
The unit 20 may also be used to generate an inventory of computer
transactions and to either immediately process the transactions or
store the inventory for later processing. The unit 20 may store the
inventory in its memory 21 and/or in storage device 23. Later the
unit 20 may be used to extract a particular transaction or
transactions from the inventory for further processing. For
example, if a requested inventory item is unavailable or if the
unit 20 cannot for any reason access the inventory storage system,
the processing unit 20 at the request of the user may store the
unfilled request in its memory 21 and/or storage 23. By doing this,
a list of inventory requests, commands or transactions to be
completed can be compiled.
After a list or inventory of requests or transactions has been
generated or compiled, the unit 20 through its programming and/or
circuitry may be used to continuously and automatically query an
inventory storage system about the availability of requested items
or the transactions on the list. This search or query function may
continue until one or more items in the inventory have been sold or
an operator intervenes and stops the search function. When a
previously uncompleted transaction is completed such as the sale of
a wait-listed seat, the processing unit 20 automatically clears it
from the list of requests.
One of the advantages of the present system is that it is capable
of notifying a requester of a sale of a wait-listed request.
Notification can be accomplished in one of several ways. For
example, the processing unit 20 could cause a ticket to be issued
using the printer 24 or, a display could appear on a video display
device 22. Alternatively, the record of the sale may be retained in
the memory 21 or storage 23 for later retrieval by the
requester.
As previously discussed, the inventory storage system may include
more than one inventory storage device 14, 14'. Access to each
device may be obtained through lines 30 and 32 and central
processing unit 16. The unit 16 may be provided with appropriate
programming or circuitry to switch from one system to the other as
desired, i.e. when there are no items left in a system to fill
requests. One of the advantages attendant to this configuration in
the context of airline reservations is that a user could identify
more or all available seats for a given flight on an airline other
than the one sponsoring the host system. As previously stated, one
only obtains information about a relatively small number of seats
on airlines other than the sponsoring airline when one enters a
co-host system through a host system. Another advantage is that
each inventOry storage device could be simultaneously searched for
item availability. The unit 16 may be configured to access each
system 14, 14' either concurrently or sequentially. Alternatively,
the system 0 could be used in the standard manner, i.e. a single
host reservation system and thus, enter a co-host system through
the primary or host reservation system.
While the inventory storage device(s) 14, 14' are normally separate
and remote from the central processing unit 16, they may
individually or collectively be part of the central processing unit
16 if so desired.
While it is preferred to store the list of inventory requests in
memory 21 and use unit 20 to query the inventory storage system,
the list of inventory requests could be stored in either memory 26
or storage 23, and the query function could be performed by central
processing unit 16. In this regard, the central processing unit 16
and/or its communication device 28 may be used to initiate or
terminate the querying function.
While the inventory storage devices 14, 14' may be accessed by unit
20 via central processing unit 16, the unit 16 could also be
eliminated and the unit 20 could be Provided with direct access to
each storage device 14, 14'.
The system 10 is further desirable in that it may be used for
non-conventional reservation booking techniques. For example, the
system may be used to define a set of standard itineraries which
are then stored in either the memory 26 of the central processing
unit or the memory 21 of the unit 20. To make reservations and/or
sell seats in this mode, the agent inputs the name of the person
taking the trip and the appropriate dates of travel and the unit 16
or 20 conforms the request to the standard itineraries.
Alternatively, the unit 20 could be used to formulate a request in
accordance with predefined criteria and then query the inventory
storage system about the availability of the requested item.
The system may also be used for non-traditional booking methods
such as: (1) off-line interfaces for high volume transactions; (2)
off-line interfaces for non-travel professionals; (3) off-line
interfaces which are part of other office automation systems; or
(4) expert systems and other heuristic or non-heuristic methods for
determining optimal routing.
One of the advantages of the present invention is that the system
allows a user to compile a list of requests before accessing the
inventory storage system. Significant cost benefits can be obtained
by accessing the inventory storage system only after the list has
been compiled instead of repeatedly logging on/off to handle each
individual request.
It is apparent that there has been provided in accordance with this
invention an airline reservation system which fully satisfies the
objects, means, and advantages set forth hereinbefore. While the
invention has been described in combination with specific
embodiments thereof, it is evident that many alternatives,
modifications, and variations will be apparent to those skilled in
the art in light of the foregoing description. Accordingly, it is
intended to embrace all such alternatives, modifications, and
variations as fall within the spirit and broad scope of the
appended claims.
* * * * *